A freak quirk in Western mining practices is causing the deaths of millions of birds–including cherished state birds–prompting aviary activists to press the Obama administration for changes that could save the lives of up to 10 million birds this year alone.
Groups such as the American Bird Conservancy want the Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service to force miners to stop using tall PVC pipe to stake out claims because birds seeking shelter fly in but can’t get out because the sides are too slippery to grab. The birds die of starvation and dehydration.
“Clearly the mortality is horrific,” said Robert Johns of American Bird Conservancy. “It needs to stop now.” Darin Schroeder, the group’s conservation advocate, added, “many of these birds tragically found dead in these pipes are also experiencing declines in their populations.”
There are some 3.4 million mining claims on public lands, mostly in the West, and an estimated 10 million pipes outlining the boundaries. During inspections, dead birds have been found in many; 26 birds were found in one Oregon pipe. The dead included bluebirds, meadowlarks, wrens and the official birds of nine states..
The administration is moving studiously to stop the slaughter, working up a draft policy that will likely require mine stake-holders to eventually replace the PVC markers with something solid like a 4X4, said the conservancy. An earlier effort to have the pipes capped hasn’t worked because they come off too easily.
But advocates want the Feds to rush a new rule requiring all mine stake-holders to permanently cap or pull down their pipes this year as a precondition to keeping their claim. Since the issue has been around for 20 years, groups like the conservancy say the administration is moving too slowly.
